Electronic teaching devices have greatly enhanced the learning capabilities of young children. A properly designed electronic teaching device provides excitement and visual rewards to a child and thus enhances the child's desire to learn. Further, most electronic teaching devices are portable, which allows children to use the devices in many settings.
One shortcoming of electronic teaching devices is their reliance on an electricity source. Typically, batteries are used in the electronic teaching devices. Batteries, however, eventually lose power and typically cannot be easily replaced by the child. Also, the cost of batteries over the life of the device may be substantial. Alternatively, the devices could be designed to connect to house current, but this would reduce the portability of the teaching devices and possibly endanger younger children.
Over the years, flash cards have proven to be an effective means of teaching children a variety of subjects, such as math, history and geography, among others. Conventional flash card systems, however, are electrically passive. Thus, they do not generate the enthusiasm for learning provided by electronic teaching devices. Existing electronic flash card systems provide the advantages of electronics, but require either batteries or an integral power supply plugged into the house current.
Therefore, a need has arisen for electronic teaching device which is self-powered.